


Fate

by sssssssim



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Angst, Coffee Shops, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fake Marriage, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-21
Updated: 2017-09-21
Packaged: 2019-01-03 20:53:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12154572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sssssssim/pseuds/sssssssim
Summary: After Snart comes back from the dead, he accompanies Sara on a mission that implies them acting like they're married. There's an unknown time aberration they need to fix, a cold blast from the future, feelings rushing up and down and an years old Metallica tshirt. Oh, and in the end, there's also fate.





	Fate

**Author's Note:**

> I used [Carrie's](http://archiveofourown.org/users/bleep0bleep/pseuds/bleep0bleep) [SFW prompt generator](http://bleep0bleep.tumblr.com/prompts) and got this:
> 
> Setting: Coffeeshop or cafe  
> Genre: Pining  
> Trope: Marriage (of arrangement, convenience, or necessity; accidental marriage; traditional marriage or partnership ceremony)  
> Prompt: Time Travel 
> 
> Not gonna lie, this got away from me. Oops. As usual, feedback is highly appreciated :)

This was not going to be pleasant, but honestly, it was mostly Sara’s fault.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

It’s been about two months since dinosaurs in LA and, surprisingly so, team Legends managed to fix that problem. It took a long string of sleepless nights and stupidly idiotic situations, but the timeline was fixed.

Mostly. For the most part.

There were still a lot of time aberrations around time and space, so the Legends were going through them.

Slowly, though. They all needed a break, really, Sara was aware of it. And while that was her choice, as the captain, she also knew that they couldn’t afford to hang around and not do anything.

So she compromised, after a lengthy conversation with Gideon.

One of the bigger aberrations was located in a small town out of Central City, in 2003. Gideon didn’t know what the aberration was, so the mission will probably involve a lot of casing. The logical conclusion was a long running undercover con.

The whole team wasn’t needed for that, though, just one of them, maybe someone else for backup.

Sara was more than willing to take point on the mission, meaning that while they made sure someone was always on the Waverider in case things went south, the rest of the team was able to take some much needed time off.

Nate and Ray were heading towards Star City, using a certain rare book the library had as an excuse for their bro date, Amaya said she planned on staying on the Waverider and sleeping, and the rest of the team were around Sara on the bridge.

‘You have to lay low’, Sara felt the need to say. ‘You can’t run into anybody who knows you, or even worse, yourself.’

‘We know, Sara’, Jax rolled his eyes. ‘That ain’t gonna stop me from getting some Big Belly Burger.’

‘Oh, good’, Stein smiled. ‘Clarissa hates that place.’

‘Just be careful’, Sara had to roll her eyes.

‘We’ll be fine’, Stein assured her softly, before following Jackson off the ship.

She turned her eyes to Mick.

‘Boss and I are currently in prison.’, he piped up. ‘No problem.’

And that made Sara finally look to the other person that remained in the office. Leonard Snart.

He’s been back for a week. He didn’t die at the Oculus, apparently, not exactly. He got scattered around time and space, and because of the high amount of time aberrations, like the dinosaurs, it took a while for the time stream to put him back together.

It felt like a second for Snart. It was months for Sara.

When Mick pointed that out, Len paled, completely, a shocked look taking over his features. He looked to Sara, immediately, and it didn’t take words for them to understand each other.

They couldn’t just pick up where they left off, that was impossible for Sara. He understood it. He gave her space, which was exactly what she needed. They didn’t play cards, they didn’t drink, they didn’t talk unless it was for a mission. They fought back to back and planned missions together, they had dinner with the team and even sparred together once time, but it was a lot less that they were before.

It hurt Sara, but she couldn’t handle anything else.

Thankfully, Snart didn’t let this get between him and the rest of the team. He fitted himself right back in, teasing Nate as much as he did Ray, making animal jokes at Amaya, trying his best to get up to date with everything that happened while he was… gone.

It was a much better outcome that Sara expected.

‘I’ll come with you’, Snart said, bringing her thoughts back to the present.

She was not expecting that either.

‘It would be preferable’, Gideon said. ‘I have discovered an opportunity for fake identities.’

‘What are they?’, Sara asked, dreading it.

‘A newlywed couple purchased a coffee shop in the city center.’

Sara hesitated. Visibly. Snart said nothing, but he was watching her, she could feel it.

Gideon went on, explaining. The coffee shop had two employees, and the next morning, they were expecting to meet the new owners. The husband will be handing the business aspects, occasionally helping with the baking in the mornings, while the wife will be working as a barista.

‘Well’, Snart drawled out, ‘I make a mean apple pie.’

Looking at him, Sara realized that he was expecting her to say no to this. She wanted to, really she did. She didn’t think she will be able to handle being with him like this, acting like newlyweds, like he didn’t die and leave her behind with a long string of memories and a tingle of lips.

But she also realized that Snart was still her team mate, and that they needed to make this work.

So she whined, very theatrically. ‘I haven’t been a barista since high school.’

Snart was surprised, and he didn’t hide it very well, but he moved on quickly.

‘We need some place to stay.’

‘The apartment above the coffee shop is fully furnished’, Gideon helpfully supplied.

‘Great’, Sara managed to say.

Snart raised an eyebrow at her, slowly getting up from his slouch against a chair and breezily telling her to pack a bag.

After he left, Sara was left staring at the empty space he left behind, dreading the following days.

‘Lance’, Mick said in a whisper. ‘You need this.’

The bastard was smirking. Sara never told him anything, about the _me and you_ and about the kiss, but she had a feeling he knew anyway.

‘Do I?’

Mick snorted. ‘Yeah, you both do.’

He left without another word, and Sara took a deep breath, before heading to the printing machine.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

She faltered when she met Snart on the bridge.

He was wearing a pair of black jeans, but they were straight leg instead of skinny, and he had a gray plaid shirt over a Metallica tshirt. Which was just as well, considering she was wearing bootcut jeans and a Nirvana tank top.

Snart hummed, raising an eyebrow. ‘Are the Masons the type of couple to fight over the type of rock they listen to?’

She tilted her head. ‘I think they’re the type of couple to accept their differences.’

There was a hint of a smile on his face. ‘We should probably figure out some backstory.’

Once again, Sara hesitated, but only because she knew that Mick and Amaya were still on the ship, and that Gideon recorded everything. For some reason, Sara thought this would be easier if it would just be the two of them.

He read her mind. ‘Let’s settle in first, shall we?’

She nodded, heading towards the exit. He stopped her, by just clicking his tongue.

When Sara turned around, Snart was right behind her, hand extended. In it, there were two rings. Wedding rings.

She swallowed with great difficulty. They were beautiful in their simplicity, gold with a jagged pattern of white gold in the middle.

‘What, no engagement ring?’, she found herself asking, even as she got her ring and put it on.

‘Are you going to be able to do this?’

He was dead serious, looking intently at her. So she felt compelled to tell him the truth.

‘We’re supposed to be a team. We have to be able to do this.’

His expression softened, as well as it turned mildly annoyed. ‘That’s not what I asked.’

‘I know’, Sara chuckled. ‘It’s the best I’ve got right now.’

It took a few seconds, but he did, eventually, nod. He put the wedding ring on, wordlessly picked up her luggage and waited for Sara to follow him off the ship.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Lord help her, Sara actually liked the coffee shop.

It wasn’t very large, just eight tables, a kitchen and a back room the staff used. But it was cute and cozy, decorated with various textures of warm wood and red accents. The mugs were red and yellow and there was a tiny bell above the entrance.

‘That’s going to get old real fast’, was all Snart said, glaring at the little bell like it tried to kill him.

Sara had to fight down a giggle. It died quickly, because Snart led her upstairs. The apartment wasn’t very large either. The living room only had a couch and a bookcase, the kitchen wouldn’t have fit the both of them and the bedroom had a wardrobe beside the bed, but they had to be very careful to not hit their elbows.

Snart didn’t waste any time. He kicked off his shoes and sprawled out, diagonally, across the bed.

‘You can have the couch’, he said without any teasing in his voice.

Sara did hate him, most of the times. Sometimes, she loved him.

So she sighed dramatically and easily climbed over him, curling on herself in the small space he left free.

‘Married people don’t sleep in different beds’, she said rather pointedly.

‘Backstory?’

Sara closed her eyes. ‘We’ve been married for a year. My aunt died and I got the inheritance, so we bought this place to start fresh.’

‘Okay’, he easily agreed. ‘Anything else?’

‘Not really.’

Sara yawned, surprised by the exhaustion she suddenly felt. She also felt a finger poking her stomach.

‘Pajamas’, Snart said with authority.

Sara whined.

He, of course, got up and started dragging her off the bed, stopping just before she was sure to fall off.

Wordlessly, she grabbed her bag and headed for the bathroom. She did, however, glare at him.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

He was sitting in the middle of the bed, wearing sweatpants and a black shirt, leaning against the headboard and reading a book.

When Snart saw her glaring, though, he did move to one side of the bed, and Sara wordlessly got under the covers next to him.

It was awkward, to say the least. Sara kept her eyes closed, but there was no way she was going to fall asleep.

Her heart was going haywire and she hated it. She hated Snart for making her feel like this. She hated him for making her think of a future with him and she hated him for dying, for being a hero, saving everyone, except himself.

Sara cared for him, she hadn’t stopped caring for him in the months that passed. But she thought he was gone for good, and she got used to that hole in her heart. And now he was back, and their kiss was a week ago on his time line.

He was there, he was here, right next to her now, smelling like the fabric softener he always made Gideon use on his clothes, radiating heat that she could feel even though Sara had a blanket up to her neck.

And she didn’t know if she wanted to close his book and straddle his hips, or if she wanted to knock him unconscious and drag him to the couch.

Sara was hyperaware, of him closing his book and putting it on the night stand, of the lights being switched off, of Snart getting under the covers and turning to face her.

Her eyes were still closed.

‘There’s one thing we haven’t discussed.’, he whispered. ‘PDAs.’

Sara snorted, despite herself.

‘It’s just a mission, I know’, he went on. ‘But I…’

He hesitated long enough for Sara to open her eyes. She could barely see him in the dark, but he was close and his eyes were shining, not once looking away from her.

‘I can only imagine, but I think this is hard for you. I know you’re not… where I am, anymore. And that’s fine. But I still want to be your friend. And if this is going to screw that up-‘

‘It’s not’, she cut him off, certain of it. Because that’s what she wanted as well, more than anything else. ‘But I think I forgot how to be your friend.’

‘May I remind you?’

He said it around a smirk, easy and chill, and it made a little of tension sweep out of Sara.

‘Remind me’, she closed her eyes. ‘And PDAs are okay in front of people, but let’s keep it clean.’

That made him snort. ‘I’ll try my best.’

Sara yawned again, snuggling deeper into the covers.

‘One more thing’, he sounded like he was closer. ‘Can you stop calling me Snart?’

‘Of course’, she didn’t hesitate. ‘That’s not your name here, remember?’

‘I didn’t mean just here.’

She has been calling him Snart since he came back, as a way of detachment. It wasn’t needed anymore.

‘Sure, Leonard.’

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The next day went on without a hitch.

They met with the two employees in the morning, who were just collage kids home for the holidays, but they were hard working, clearly, and they helped Sara and Len, getting them up to date with what they needed to do.

It wasn’t that hard. Len could, apparently, actually bake a delicious apple pie, and he just needed to be there for the weekly supplies delivery. Sara was quick enough to remember how to handle the machines, and the rest of the things she needed to do around the coffee shop were easy to pick up.

That first day, Len left at about five, claiming he was going grocery shopping. Sara didn’t really believe him, but she let him leave. She even accepted the kiss on the cheek he gave her.

By the time it was 9pm and Sara closed up the coffee shop, her feet were kinda sore and she was absolutely exhausted.

Len wasn’t at the apartment, but the fridge was stocked. Fully. He even got Sara the cookies she liked. She smiled as she headed for the bathroom.

After a long hot shower, she took the cookies and a glass of milk and got comfortable on the couch, watching sitcoms that for her were old but were actually just airing.

That’s how Len found her, a little while later.

‘I got sheets’, is what he opened with. ‘And thicker blankets.’

Sara just raised an eyebrow, even if she was grateful for the extra comfort. Last night got cold enough to wake her up a few times.

Len puttered around the bedroom for a while, coming out in pajamas and with one of the new blankets. He sat on the couch next to Sara, covering them both with the blanket.

‘I talked to Gideon, everyone’s fine. No change on the aberration, though, but she said she’d call with news. I got us cells, I really did miss flip phones.’

She snorted at that. ‘Thanks for… running errands.’

He bristled at that. ‘I hear it’s what good husbands do.’

It made her roll her eyes.

‘Are you tired?’, he asked next.

Sara nodded. ‘It’s not hard work, but it’s still tiring on the legs. I’ll get used to it soon, promise.’

He frowned. ‘That sounds like you believe we’re gonna be here awhile.’

She shrugged. ‘We don’t know much.’

‘And you want to let the team have a vacation.’

At her surprise, he threw her a look.

‘You could use a vacation too’, Sara pointed out. ‘A lot more than the rest of them.’

‘I’m good here’, he said after a too long pause, turning to the tv and pulling an affronted face. ‘Oh god, is this One Tree Hill?’

Sara snickered. ‘Brand new show. Promises to be good. Your street cred dropped real low cause you recognized it.’

‘Lisa’, he still looked appalled.

They still watched the episode, even if he complained. Constantly.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Waking up at 4:30 AM every morning was horrible, but Len always woke up five minutes before her, and he made coffee. Too strong and too bitter, just like she liked it.

They’d head down to the coffee shop at 5, Sara setting everything up in the front while Len started baking in the kitchen. Most of their pastries were delivered from a bakery one town over, but he’d bake a pie and a cake, and Sara usually ended up decorating them.

The baking skills didn’t shock Sara, she knew it was because Lisa had a massive sweet tooth growing up. No, what shocked her was how _invested_ Len was into it. The batter had to be perfect, the filling had to taste perfectly, does this need more vanilla? what about nutmeg?. Honestly, she was surprised he wasn’t so anal about the decorating too, always letting her have fun with it.

They were… getting there. During the day, when there were customers and employees around, they’d kiss cheeks and touch innocently, joking around and smiling good naturally.  

In the evenings and in the mornings, when it was just the two of them, there were no awkward silences, no charged looks, no flirting. It was just the two of them, filling up the same space, usually tired. Len always cooked dinner, since he got off work earlier, and they always ate on the couch, watching tv.

Sara felt a lot better than she thought she would and she didn’t really know how to handle it.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

‘Something’s going to happen tomorrow’, Len told her one evening during the first week. ‘Gideon doesn’t know what, but we should keep our eyes open.’

‘That’s not much to go on’, Sara mumbled with a mouth filled with mac and cheese.

Len threw her a look, so she swallowed. ‘We got nothing to go on?’

‘Unfortunately not.’

Sara fell asleep on the couch that night, but she woke up in the middle of the bed, with Len’s legs over hers.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The next day, they gave the day off to the employees and Len stayed in the coffee shop. He went through several books, got them lunch from across the street, made Sara sit down every other hour, using ridiculous arguments every time instead of saying it was for her ankles and acting overly sweet when their employees paid them attention.

It didn’t take too much to figure out what the time aberration was, considering she walked straight into the coffee shop ten minutes before closing time.

Sara recognized her, even if she was a teenager, with too short hair and dark bags under her eyes.

She ordered a cup of hot chocolate, and paid with change. Upon further inspection, Sara saw that she looked a little worse for wear, her clothes wrinkled and dried mud on her sneakers. Still, she gave her the hot chocolate and some leftover cake and smiled gently at her.

She sat down at a table close to Len, and he almost dropped the book he was holding when he saw her. He was quick to get up and make his way to Sara’s side.

‘She’s not supposed to be here’, he hissed in her ear, disguising it with wrapping a hand around her waist.

‘I got that, yeah’, Sara dripped sarcasm. ‘What do we do?’

They both turned to look at the girl, and paused. Because she looked terrified, staring out the window, where a pair of police officers were walking down the street, clearly heading towards the coffee shop.

‘Kid’, Len said loudly. ‘Are you in trouble?’

‘No’, she shook her head. ‘But they think I am.’

Without hesitation, Sara pushed Len away. ‘Take her upstairs, I’ll deal with the cops.’

The kid looked like she wanted to argue, but Len didn’t let her.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The cops came in waving a picture of the girl, smiling brightly at the camera with an older man by her side, probably her dad.

‘No, I haven’t seen her’, Sara lied, easily. ‘What did she do?’

‘Ran away from home’, one of the cops rolled his eyes. ‘But her mom’s got connections, so we have to treat it as a missing person. We know she got on a bus heading here.’

‘I’ll let you know if she comes through’, Sara said quickly.

Maybe too quickly, because the cop that wasn’t talking to her narrowed his eyes.

‘Business slow?’

‘It usually is this time of night.’, Sara smiled at innocently as possible.

‘Who’s that for, then?’, the cop pointed at the hot chocolate mug.

‘My husband was keeping me company’, the word easily rolled off her tongue.

‘And I’m back to keep you company’, Len’s smooth voice said, as he came out from the back and immediately plastered himself to Sara, going as far as kissing her temple.

The cops left quickly after and Sara was quick to close the shop, Len helping her. As they got to the door to the apartment, though, they both stopped.

‘We can’t tell her who we really are’, Sara said.

He nodded. ‘But what are we supposed to do? Send her back home? Keep her here?’

‘You said she’s not supposed to be here.’, Sara pointed out. ‘We’ll call Gideon after she falls asleep.’

‘So we keep her here’, Len tilted his head. ‘Okay, it’s not even the first time I kidnapped her.’

‘It’s not kidnapping’, Sara punched his shoulder. ‘And you’ll be nice!’

‘Yes, dear’, he rolled his eyes and before she got to answer, Len opened the door and stepped inside the apartment.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

‘I’m sorry’, was the first thing the girl said. ‘This blew up way out of proportions and I should probably just leave.’

‘No, you’re not leaving’, Len said strongly.

Sara punched his shoulder again. ‘That makes you sound like you’re a criminal, Len. Which you’re not.’, she turned to the girl, who was now silently crying. ‘Look, we’re not going to hurt you. You can spend the night here, if you want, we’ll help you in any way we can.’

‘I don’t need help’, she sniffed.

‘Sweetheart’, Len said and for once, it was not sarcastic, ‘you’re shaking in your boots and the weather guy said there’s going to be a storm tonight.’

‘Stay for dinner’, Sara smiled. ‘Sleep on the couch. You don’t have to tell us a thing if you don’t want to, but we’re here to listen.’

It took a few seconds for the girl to get on board with that plan.

‘Well, I’m Leonard’, he said easily, ‘and this is my wife, Sara.’

‘I’m Caitlin. Caitlin Snow.’

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Dinner was a silent affair, because Caitlin was too busy shoveling food down her mouth. Clearly, she hadn’t eaten in a while. After that, she shyly asked to take a shower, and Sara was quick to lend her some clothes. Well, a pair of her sweatpants and Len’s Metallica tshirt were the only clean things they had. Laundry day was tomorrow.

While she was showering, Len called Gideon. Apparently, they had to make sure that Caitlin was back in Central City in five days time, when Harrison Wells was set to deliver a speech at the university, and Caitlin’s father was supposed to take her.

It was the real Harrison Wells, and it was, apparently, the moment that helped Caitlin decide to become a bioengineer and, later on, take the job at Star Labs.

But Caitlin wasn’t up to talking, she was falling asleep on her feet.

‘Get some rest, okay?’, Sara said kindly. ‘We’ll leave the door open if you need anything.’

‘No, that’s fine’, Caitlin shook her head, blushing furiously.

‘It’s alright’, Len snorted, wrapping a hand around Sara’s waist. ‘We behave when we have guests.’

She slapped as his chest, good naturally, but couldn’t stop the blush that came over her.

It made Caitlin smile, though, so it was a win.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The next morning, when Sara got out of bed, she expected to find Len in the kitchen, making them coffee.

Instead, she found him in the living room, gently pulling the blanket over Caitlin, from where it had ridden down during the night. He said nothing as he went to the kitchen and started on coffee.

‘That was sweet’, Sara whispered, taking her usual space on the counter, next to the stove.

Len said nothing.

‘Did your heart grow three times because of the sight of a crying young girl?’

He snorted. ‘I had my fair share of that when Lisa was growing up.’

Sara just waited him out.

‘My heart did not grow three times because of the sight of a crying young girl.’, he deadpanned. ‘But…’

Again, she waited him out.

‘You met Caitlin, right? During the invasion?’

Sara nodded. ‘We didn’t get to talk much.’

‘She’s… Doctor Snow is not like that’, he tilted his head towards the living room. ‘She’s strong. She’s… She was strapped to a bomb, Mick was waving his lighter in her face, menacingly talking about burning her to reveal her true self…’

Sara pulled a face at that, Len ignored her.

‘And you know what she did? She told Mick to kill her, but begged for Barry’s life.’

‘Impressive’, Sara had to admit.

‘We have to fix this’, Len said strongly.

‘We will.’

‘No’, Len leveled her with a look. ‘We _have_ to fix this, because there is no way in hell Barry survives being The Flash without her.’

Sara had no answer to that. She knew they had to fix the aberration but when Len put it like that, fixing Caitlin was just that bit more important.

‘I’ll talk to her today’, Sara went as far as putting her hand on Len’s arm.

He didn’t react to it in any way, and withdraw it pretty quickly, because their coffee was done.

Caitlin didn’t wake up as they left for work, so Sara left her a set of keys and a note to raid the fridge.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Caitlin made her way down to the coffee shop close to noon. Sara was quick to make her a cup of coffee, and ignored all of her tries to thank her.

‘You probably shouldn’t hang around here too much’, Sara whispered to her. ‘In case the cops come back.’

Caitlin’s eyes grew alarmingly wide at that.

Sara suppressed a smirk and took her lunch break. They went back upstairs and planned to cook some food, but Len turned up then.

‘I’m making you ladies lunch, get out of the kitchen.’

Sara was more than happy to do that, he was a better cook than her.

‘I’m imposing’, Caitlin was frowning.

‘No, you’re not’, Sara was quick to laugh.

‘But I am. Your husband hasn’t even kissed you hello, I’m sorry, you don’t have to act any differently just because I am here.’

Sara hesitated, but she hid it around a smile, turning to look at Len.

He hesitates as well, but hid it around a smirk.

‘We shouldn’t make our guest mad.’

Len said it as a joke, for Caitlin’s sake, but also a reminder, for Sara, that Caitlin shouldn’t find out the truth.

So Sara smiled at Len, going as far as puckering her lips and tilting her head towards him.

Len chuckled, but he did kiss her. Quick and barely there, but it was enough for Sara’s heartbeat to pick up a notch.

Of course, it returned to normal pretty quickly, when Len, somewhat gently, used his knee to push her out of the kitchen, Caitlin following with a laugh.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Lunch went better than dinner the night before, because Caitlin asked them questions, about the coffee shop and about themselves, but they were basic stuff, so they had no problems answering.

As Len washed the dishes, Sara leveled Caitlin with a look.

‘I know I said you didn’t have to talk about it, but the cops said you ran away from home. Don’t you want to call your parents?’

‘No’, Caitlin shook her head. ‘Mom doesn’t care and Dad knows I can take care of myself.’

Sara bit back the obvious response. ‘They’re worried.’

‘No’, the young woman answered with a lot of certainty.

Sara sighed, because she knew Caitlin’s mind was not going to be changed so easily.

‘You can stay here for a few more days’, Len said, coming back to the living room with several chocolate bars that he was quick to hand the girls.

‘But you gotta be out of here by Friday, we got plans.’

‘We do?’, Sara frowned. She knew that Caitlin had to be back in Central City by Saturday, so he was probably lying.

‘Yup.’

‘Is it a surprise?’, Caitlin teased.

‘Yup’, Len didn’t hesitate. ‘And no’, he glared at Sara, ‘there isn’t anything you can do to make me tell you.’

Caitlin giggled at that, and Sara bit back the sexual response.

Len raised an eyebrow at her, probably knowing exactly what she was thinking of.

‘Weren’t you supposed to get back to work ten minutes ago?’

Sara cursed at him, and slapped the back of his neck, and she kept cursing at him as she hurried back to the coffee shop. Len and Caitlin both kept on laughing.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

When she came back to the apartment that evening, Sara first kissed Len, then she showered, then she had dinner on the couch, sitting between Len and Caitlin, watching tv.

Getting into bed that night, Len got close to her, very close. It made her freeze.

‘We have to try harder’, he whispered very low, considering the door to the bedroom was open and they knew Caitlin wouldn’t be asleep yet.

‘Promise’, she whispered back.

Len nodded, pulling away from her and settling in bed.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The next day went pretty much in the same way, with one major difference. During dinner, she noticed that Caitlin and Len have bonded during the day, enough to make jokes and tease each other.

Sara was still surprised, though, when after dinner was finished, Len asked Caitlin if her parents were abusing her.

Caitlin seemed shocked as well, considering her jaw dropped and she didn’t say anything.

‘My father used to do that’, Len said without any trace of emotion, ‘so I know how it feels. We can go to the police, we should go to the police.’

‘No’, Caitlin gulped. ‘That’s not…’

‘Then what?’, Sara asked gently.

‘Dad’s sick’, Caitlin started, slowly. ‘Got diagnosed two years ago with multiple sclerosis.’

‘We don’t know what that is.’, Len told her.

‘It’s a disease of the central nervous system. It’s… it’s a long fight, and he is fighting but… it’s going to get bad, eventually.’

‘I’m sorry’, Sara said as kindly as she could.

‘Mom’s trying to find a cure.’, Caitlin went on. ‘She won’t, there’s no way she’ll find anything in time. So she’s at the lab all day, and Dad is acting like nothing is wrong, but I can see it, I see early onset symptoms and I just…’

She was crying by that point, and Sara didn’t hesitate to hug her.

She shared a look with Len, but the truth was that Sara had no idea what to say. She didn’t know how to comfort Caitlin and she didn’t know how to convince her to go back home.

‘I just need a break’, Caitlin said trough her sobs.

Len swore under his breath and reached towards Caitlin, patting her hand with surprising gentleness.

‘You can stay here for a few more days. But Caitlin, you’re a smart cookie. You know that you’re going to regret not being there for your dad.’

Caitlin cried harder at that, but didn’t deny it.

‘I’ll make you a deal.’, Len said next, smirking slightly. ‘How about you and I take a field trip tomorrow?’

Even Sara blanched at that, and she didn’t complain when Caitlin stopped their hug, staring at Len.

‘Have breakfast at the coffee shop after you wake up, catch a movie, grab some lunch, do some shopping and be back in time to cook dinner for Sara?’

Sara couldn’t really remember when Len looked as soft as he did in that moment. He looked like he really cared for Caitlin and Sara knew him well enough to know that he wasn’t acting. It made her smile.

‘Why are you being so nice to me?’, Caitlin asked. ‘I’m a stranger.’

For some reason, Len looked to Sara then. He smiled at her, reaching behind Caitlin and grabbing Sara’s hand.

He squeezed her fingers as he looked at Caitlin.

‘I know we seem like we’re a nice happy couple, who has their lives figured out and everything is just peachy’. The sarcasm was thick.

‘But’, he rolled his eyes, ‘it’s not like that, it’s not always been like that. It took us… a long while to get here. And we couldn’t have done it on our own. Our team, our friends…’

Len smiled at Caitlin. ‘Everybody needs someone, sooner or later.’

‘And if you need a break’, Sara finally found her voice, ‘we’ll give that to you.’

‘But the day after tomorrow’, Len continued, ‘we’ll drive you home. Because your father needs you on his team right now.’

It took a few seconds, but Caitlin wiped her face clean of tears and she agreed to the plan.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

That night, Len closed the door to the bedroom. He ignored the look Sara gave him and got under the covers, calling Gideon and asking what happens to Caitlin’s dad.

‘He dies, Mr. Snart. A few weeks before Caitlin receives the invitation to Star Labs.’

‘So her decision to go work there is probably connected’, Sara said.

‘So we can’t save him.’, Len concluded.

Gideon’s silence was answer enough.

‘Gideon’, Sara said. ‘Any change to the timeline?’

‘Not yet, Captain Lance.’

‘We’re working on it’, Len said a bit too loudly, Sara had to shush him.

‘How is the rest of the team?’, she asked the AI.

‘Enjoying the vacation, Captain, just like we thought they would.’

‘It’ll be over in about two days’, Len added.

‘I hope the two of you are enjoying your vacation as well’, Gideon said next, making both of them share a confused look. Still, they wordlessly decided they weren’t going to address it.

After the call ended, Len was getting comfortable under the covers.

‘Aren’t you going to go open the door?’, Sara drawled out.

They’ve been sleeping with the door to the bedroom open since Caitlin came, in case she needed anything during the night. Granted, she never did, but Sara liked to be able to hear if Caitlin woke up during the night.

‘No’, Len said after a too long pause.

‘Why not?’, she narrowed her eyes.

‘We’re supposed to be married.’

He didn’t explain, but Sara understood it either way. He wanted Caitlin to think they were having sex.

She had no answer to that, really. It was a good thing for the con, sure, but Sara was uncomfortable thinking about her and Len having sex.

Well, no, not uncomfortable, it probably wouldn’t be uncomfortable at all, but it would be weird, right now.

She was quiet for too long, because Len started laughing.

‘Stop it’, she angrily whispered.

He kept laughing.

‘Len, stop’, she said a bit louder.

He laughed harder at that.

Next thing Sara was aware of, she had a pillow in her hands and was kneeling on the bed, dodging attacks from the pillow Len was aiming at her head.

They were both laughing, for real, not the fake giggles they served to the people in the coffee shop, the low chuckles they couldn’t stop on the Waverider. Now, they were full on loosing it, Sara felt her tummy start to hurt and Len had tears in his eyes.

It was a perfect moment and it shocked her into freezing, completely.

Len stopped too, frowning at her. He threw the pillow back on the bed and grabbed her shoulder.

‘What’s wrong?’

Sara didn’t answer immediately, so in that silence, they both heard the tv turning on a music channel and the volume turning up.

Len raised an eyebrow. ‘She definitely thinks we’re getting laid now.’

Sara hugged him. Tightly. Len was so surprised, he almost lost his footing. But he didn’t, so they were both still kneeling on the bed, and it took a couple if seconds, but he wrapped a hand around Sara’s waist.

He was hesitating, clearly, and she was acting on instincts and the adrenaline rush that came from laughing like an idiot.

‘I missed you’, Sara admitted in a whisper, pushing her face into Len’s chest, because she knew she was blushing.

Len sighed, then, wrapping both of his hands around her and holding her just as tightly as she was.

‘I’m here now’, he whispered against her hair and Sara had to take a deep breath at that.

They stayed like that, in silence for a while. So, once again, they both heard the tv volume turning down.

Len stopped the hug, then, narrowing his eyes at her.

‘Oh my god, Sara!’, he kind of yelled. It wasn’t overly sexual, but it was just loud enough and sexy enough to make Caitlin turn up the volume again.

‘You’re a jerk’, Sara told him sternly.

Len snickered and bounced back on the bed, making it squeak loudly, comfortably lying back on top of the covers. He also turned the light off.

‘Come to bed, sweetheart’, Len said overly flirtatious. ‘We’ve got work to do.’

Sara wanted to punch him. She also wanted to kiss him.

She did neither of those things. Instead, Sara dropped her entire weight on top of Len. He let out a groan, but didn’t push her off. So Sara wiggled around and he wiggled around until they were both comfortable.

Clearly, Len had no trouble going to sleep like this, considering he even wrapped his arms around her.

But Sara wasn’t going to let him win this round. So she took a deep breath and said his name in the loudest, sexiest way possible. It didn’t sound fake at all, it sounded like a full on moan.

He stopped breathing for a few seconds, and then he started shaking, pushing his face to her neck to not laugh out loud.

Sara didn’t know how long it took for them to fall asleep, but she knew he was still holding her.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The next morning, as Caitlin was still sleeping upstairs and Sara was decorating the chocolate cake Len baked, she leveled him with a look.

‘Are you really going to take Caitlin where you said you would?’

‘Of course’, there was no hesitation.

‘The movies? Lunch? Shopping?’

It was a ridiculous notion, really, Len doing all those things with a teenage girl. But just as she realized something, Len smirked.

‘I have done all of that and then some with a teenage girl.’

‘I really hope you’re talking about Lisa’, Sara pulled a face.

Len glared. ‘Of course I was talking about Lisa. Ew.’

She snickered, finishing decorating the cake.

‘I’ll take care of her’, Len turned his back to Sara. ‘You know I will.’

‘I do’, Sara was quick to say. ‘I just thought that it won’t be enjoyable for you.’

Len snorted. ‘It won’t. But if it’ll help…’

‘Text me when the teenage rebellion gets too much’, Sara couldn’t help but tease.

Of course, Len just rolled his eyes.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

He didn’t text throughout the day, nor did he call. He didn’t even show up, Caitlin did. It was half an hour before closing time, so there was nobody around.

‘Did he kick you out of the kitchen?’, Sara grinned when she saw Caitlin’s pout over the hot chocolate Sara made her.

‘Yes.’

‘Don’t take it personally’, Sara snickered. ‘We used to have a huge kitchen at our last place, he hasn’t gotten used to the tiny kitchen yet.’

‘That’s what he said’, Caitlin nodded, smiling.

Actually, Caitlin has been smiling since she came in. Which was surprising, considering she hadn’t done a lot of that since she ran from home.

‘So how was your day?’, Sara grinned. ‘Tell me all about it.’

‘You have a lovely husband.’, Caitlin said in a rush. ‘He’s so nice and polite and he spent so much money on me today, even though I asked him not to, repeatedly.’

‘He likes to spoil us girls’, Sara said quickly, being quite certain of it. ‘It started with his little sister.’

‘That’s what he said’, Caitlin smiled again. ‘He’s a great man, Sara. And he loves you a lot.’

That surprised Sara, and she didn’t hide her reaction, curious of why Caitlin came to that conclusion.

‘It’s just the way he talks about you’, Caitlin shrugged, still smiling. ‘And how he finds reasons to talk about you. And how his eyes light up when he talks about you.’

Despite herself, Sara blushed. Caitlin ignored it, frowning.

‘Did you two fight, though? Before we left or last night?’

‘No’, Sara shook her head. ‘We didn’t. Why would you ask that?’

‘He kept… hesitating.’, Caitlin was looking concerned.

Sara wasn’t concerned. Len probably hesitated because he was lying to Caitlin.

‘We’re fine’, she told the younger girl. ‘Don’t you worry about it.’

‘I’m not worried’, Caitlin giggled. ‘Anybody and everybody can tell how much you love each other just by looking at the… way you’re looking at each other.’

Sara tilted her head.

‘I am awful at creative writing’, Caitlin pulled a face, making Sara snort.

‘It’s true, though’, the younger woman went on. ‘You love each other, I’m not worried. I’m just curious and I…’, she looked away. ‘I wondered if it’s because of me.’

‘It’s not’, Sara was quick to assure her. ‘I promise, it’s not, Caitlin, we just want to help you.’

Caitlin smiled. ‘That’s what Leonard said.’

‘Oh god’, Sara cringed. ‘Are we _that_ couple? The one that talks the same and thinks the same and-‘

She stopped when Caitlin laughed.

‘It’s sweet, though. You’re sweet.’

Sara laughed, because she imagined Len’s face if he would have heard someone calling him sweet. When she sobered up, she grabbed Caitlin’s hand.

‘And did today help you?’

Caitlin nodded. ‘It did, surprisingly so. I feel silly now.’

‘Don’t do that’, Sara said sternly. ‘Never feel sorry for whatever you’re feeling. You’re entitled to it.’

‘I hurt my dad, though.’, Caitlin whispered. ‘I know I did.’

Sara knew a thing or two about how fathers felt when their daughters disappeared.

‘Yeah, you did’, she said softly. ‘But that doesn’t mean he loves you less because of it. He’ll just be happy that you’re back home.’

Caitlin nodded at that, albeit shakily.

‘I’m sure your mother was worried, too.’, Sara tried.

The other woman shook her head. ‘I doubt it.’

‘Tell you what?’, Sara said after a beat. ‘I’m like, 80% sure that life’s gonna make us run into each other again. I’ll bet you five bucks that your mom cares.’

Caitlin laughed, but they did shake hands on the bet, just as Len made his way to the coffee shop.

‘Dinner is served and you were supposed to close ten minutes ago.’

He was glaring at Sara, but it wasn’t very strong. So she grinned at him, kissed him quickly straight on the lips and rushed through closing everything up for the night.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

After dinner that night, Len closed the door to the bedroom again.

‘I just wanna talk’, he smirked. ‘And call Gideon.’

Sara allowed it. There were no changes to the timeline, but they didn’t expect anything to happen before Caitlin actually got back home. Gideon also assured them that the team was all alright, even if Sara was starting to feel some anxiousness about all the trouble they could get into.

After the call ended, Len wordlessly closed the lights and got comfortable, but he didn’t say anything.

‘So’, Sara poked him arm. ‘Tell me, how was it?’

‘Not bad’, Len kept his voice low, even if the door was shut. ‘Lisa was a lot whineier than Caitlin.’

‘But did you talk about her parents?’

‘No.’, Len sighed. ‘She didn’t need that. She just needed a day to _not_ think about her parents.’

‘Well I don’t know how you did it, but she seems ready to go home.’, Sara couldn’t help but smile.

‘You were doubting me?’, he sounded affronted, but it was an act, that Sara didn’t even dignify with an answer.

‘We saw _Finding Nemo_ and ate McDonalds for lunch. And at the mall, I got her a cheap bracelet and we had icecream.’

Sara was giggling ever since he said _Finding Nemo_. It didn’t stop Len.

‘We also talked about her best friend, the bitchy popular girls at school and the boy she has a crush on.’

‘Are you serious?’, Sara was pretty much biting on her tongue to keep from laughing out loud.

‘Deadly’, Len deadpanned.

Sara turned on her front and all but shoved her face into her pillow, to muffle the laughter. She felt Len moving, and she felt a weight on her lower back. It took her a beat to realize that it was Len’s head, lying just above her butt.

It made her stop laughing.

‘Should I move?’, he whispered.

‘Probably.’

‘Do you want me to move?’

Sara hesitated for only a second. ‘No.’

Len sighed. He got comfortable, his cheek pressed to Sara’s back, one of his hands sneaking up her ribcage. It stopped before it reached her boob, but just barely.

‘I hope she’s gonna be okay’, he whispered after a while.

‘We know she won’t.’, Sara said. ‘The life she has in front of her won’t be easy.’

‘I wish I could change that’, he said very softly. ‘The kid that’s sleeping on our couch right now, she’s funny and she likes rollerblading and she doesn’t want a fairytale romance, she just wants someone to be there.’

‘We can’t change what’s going to happen’, Sara said just a little bitterly. ‘You said it yourself. You can’t have the Flash without Caitlin Snow. And she needs to go through everything she will go through, in order to become the Caitlin Snow we know is back in 2017.’

‘I know that’, Len sighed again. ‘Doesn’t mean I have to like it.’

A question came to Sara then. ‘Do you know what happened to her? Ronnie and Killer Frost?’

‘Jax told me about Ronnie a long time ago. Gideon told me about Killer Frost before we left the Waverider.’

Sara couldn’t help but snort. ‘You actually researched.’

‘As I do before every mission’, the hand he had on her ribcage dug into her skin just a tad too hard.

‘It’s more than that’, Sara shook her head. ‘You’ve been… Ever since she came here, you’ve been weirdly invested.’

Len took a long time to answer that, and she was grateful that he didn’t try to deny it.

‘I feel like I owe her. I hurt her before and she didn’t deserve that.’

Sara smiled, even if he couldn’t see it.

‘Plus, you like her.’, she pointed out. ‘You like this Caitlin and you like the older Caitlin.’

There was a pause before he answered, quite menacingly. ‘You’re not allowed to tell that information to any other living soul.’

Sara snorted again. ‘Cause it will ruin your image of a heartless villain?’

Len just hummed, digging his fingers into her skin again, before his hand went slack and he let out a long huff of air that tickled her back.

‘Teenage girls are exhausting’, he yawned.

Sara snickered, but she also told him goodnight. He mumbled a response before quickly falling asleep.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The coffee shop employees said they could handle being alone for a day, so Sara was going to join Len in driving Caitlin back home. While they both headed down to the coffee shop at the usual early hour, after Len was done baking, they headed back up and napped for another two hours.

Len woke Sara up by running his fingers through her hair and promising that there was coffee and pancakes waiting. She whined, but did wake up and made her way to the living room, where Caitlin was already up and halfway through breakfast.

‘You ready for this?’, Sara asked gently.

‘No. But I’m going to do it anyway.’

It was the most Caitlin Snow-esque thing she said since she came to Sara and Len. And it made both of them grin, her more than him.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The drive lasted two hours, which were spent in silence. But as they got closer to Caitlin’s house, she started crying.

‘Do you want us to come with you?’, Len asked as soon as he parked the car in front of a nice, typical suburban house.

‘No’, Caitlin sniffed. ‘But I do want you to get out of the car and hug me.’

Len rolled his eyes, of course he did, but he did get out of the car. He did it slowly, so Caitlin hugged Sara first.

‘Thank you’, the younger woman said. ‘I’m looking forward to the five bucks you’ll give me next time we see each other.’

Sara snorted. ‘Not happening, kid.’

Caitlin was smiling as she detached herself, and it turned into a grin when she saw the glare Len was sending her. Still, he accepted the hug Caitlin gave him, even returned it, somewhat gently.

She had tears in her eyes, but Caitlin took a deep breath and grabbed a hold of both Sara and Len’s hands.

‘Thank you so much, for everything you’ve done for me.’

‘It wasn’t much’, Sara felt the need to say.

‘It meant the world, though.’, Caitlin said strongly. ‘I’ll never be able to repay you.’

‘You don’t need to’, Sara said quickly.

‘Just take care, alright?’, Len said lowly. ‘And stay strong.’

Caitlin nodded at that, smiled and kissed Sara’s cheek. She wanted to kiss Len too, but because of the height difference, he had to bend down.

It was the most adorable thing Sara’s seen in weeks.

They stayed in the car until Caitlin got into the house, so they saw her father hugging her tightly, and they saw the look of pure relief on her mother’s face.

Sara couldn’t stop smiling.

Of course, it didn’t last long. Gideon called.

‘Captain, the timeline has righted itself, but we have a problem. The ship is under attack.’

‘What? Who?’

‘I’d be wasting time to explain, Captain. We need to make a time jump in order to escape.’

‘Who’s on board?’, Len asked, speeding the car towards where the Waverider was parked.

‘Everyone except for you and Captain Lance.’

‘We got this, guys!’, Nate’s voice came through. ‘We’re going to come back for you.’

‘Don’t you dare-‘, Len tried, but Sara interrupted him.

‘Gideon, Mick’s the new Captain until I’m on board.’

‘Really, Sara?’, Nate seemed annoyed.

‘You come back for us’, there was desperation seeping through Sara’s voice. ‘And not in two years, do you understand?’

‘Promise, Blondie’, Mick’s gruff voice came through. ‘Now hang up so we don’t die.’

He didn’t wait for Sara to hang up. Len cursed, loudly and filthy, and stopped the car on the side of the road, with a loud screech of breaks.

Sara was panicking. The last time she was left behind, she couldn’t handle it and she ended up with the League. She couldn’t let that happen again, but if the team didn’t hurry back, Sara was afraid she was going to lose her strength.

Len grabbed her hand, tightly intertwining their fingers.

‘You’re shaking’, he said softly, and that explained the concern in his eyes.

‘I’m here’, Len said next and Sara remembered she needed to breathe.

‘Let’s get icecream’, he said with authority and despite herself, Sara chuckled at that.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

They did get icecream, two buckets of it, and they ate it all sitting on the couch, in their pajamas, under the blanket, watching tv.

Sara didn’t move after the icecream was over, but Len moved her, until she was plastered to his side, Len holding her close.

‘I know what you’re thinking’, he started, ‘and I’m not going to let you fall back.’

‘Fall?’, Sara frowned.

‘To your old ways’, Len said gently.

He didn’t say anything else, he didn’t explain or offer meaningless reassurance. He just held her.

‘Promise?’, Sara whispered.

‘Promise’.

There was absolutely no hesitation in Len’s voice and it calmed down Sara, just a little. She couldn’t completely ignore the doubt, though, because last time, she was with both Kendra and Ray. Now, she just had Len.

He might be enough. Might be more than enough.

She hoped Len would keep her tethered to humanity. She wanted it.

She wanted Len. That was that.

But she wasn’t ready to have him.

That was the thought that plagued her mind every since he came back from the dead. Sara thought that his death damaged her. Add Laurel’s death to the mix, and everything that happened since the Oculus, Sara wasn’t the same person she was when Len died.

She wasn’t the same person he fell for.

But in his arms right now, Sara couldn’t help but think that maybe he didn’t see things that way. And the thought of finding out scared her more than being stranded in 2003.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The next morning, they went through their usual routine without even discussing it. Still, when lunchtime came around, Len came to the coffee shop, wearing a cap and holding another one.

‘Sara’s going to be taking a long lunch’, he announced, easily smiling at the employee who was sharing a shift with her. ‘Can you handle that?’

‘Sure boss’, the dude grinned. ‘Go make your wife happy, she’s been a downer today.’

Sara huffed, rolling her eyes in annoyance, because she kept telling him she was fine all morning. Still, Sara put down her apron and wordlessly followed Len to the car.

He drove in silence to Central City, stopping in front of the university.

‘What are we doing?’, Sara only mildly dreaded the answer.

‘Put that on’, Len pointed to the extra cap. ‘It’s best if people don’t recognize us.’

‘We’re here to check on Caitlin, aren’t we?’, Sara finally understood.

‘Yup’, Len wasn’t bothered.

So for the next hour, Sara and Len sat in the back of a lecture hall, not really listening to the real Harrison Wells talking about science and opportunities, but keeping an eye out for Caitlin, who was sitting further down the hall, with her father.

When the lecture was over, Caitlin was the first one to rush to Wells, animatedly talking at him. She was smiling and waving her hands and her father was by her side, looking at her with a proud smile on his face. Wells looked impressed, if not a little amused.

‘Problem solved’, Len whispered in her ear and Sara rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.

‘I need to get back to work.’

‘Your carriage awaits’, Len said overly dramatic, going as far as taking a bow.

It was ridiculous and so out of character for Captain Cold. Sara loved it.

She loved him.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

The next day, Len took her to a diner for lunch. The day after that, he cooked her favorite comfort food. The day after that, he suggested going for a movie after they close up.

It was then when she leveled him with a look.

‘You’re trying to distract me.’

His right eye twitched. ‘From the impending sense of doom you’re probably experiencing. Yes.’

Sara rolled her eyes. ‘We’re not going to the movies. I’m tired.’

Len narrowed his eyes at her.

‘I appreciate what you’re trying to do’, Sara gave him that. ‘But I’d much rather just cuddle on the couch and watch some bad tv.’

Len frowned at that.

‘What?’, Sara bristled.

‘There’s nobody around’, he said slowly. ‘We don’t have to act like we’re married.’

She faltered at that, because he was right. But she still wanted to cuddle with him on the couch after a long day at work. Even if it was for the sake of a fake marriage. Even if it wasn’t for the sake of a fake marriage.

‘I’ll see you later’, was all the answer she gave him, but it did the job, because Len left.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

When she got to the apartment that night, Len was already on the couch, in pajamas. He hadn’t cooked, so Sara made some sandwiches for herself and joined him on the couch, making sure to sit down a good distance away.

Len said nothing, as they watched tv for a while, and he said nothing as they got ready for bed. Sara snuggled up to him under the covers, and he still said nothing for a while.

Just as she was about to fall properly asleep, Len pushed her away.

‘I do not get you’, he was angry, startling Sara.

He turned on the lights and got out of bed, pacing a few times before turning to look at her. He was angry, yes, but he was also confused.

‘You’ve been giving me mixed signals since the moment we got here and I can’t take it anymore.’

Sara said nothing, which was a good thing, because Len went on.

‘You made it _perfectly_ clear, that you didn’t feel the same for me, and that is okay, I can handle that. But I cannot handle knowing that, and having you snuggle up to me when nobody’s watching!’

He kicked at the bed, anger slipping through his demeanor, and it seemed to startle him, because Len took a deep breath and calmed himself down.

‘I thought I could do it’, he looked as his feet, ‘but I can’t, I’m not strong enough to …’, he took a deep breath, ‘to hold you, knowing that I can’t have you. So please, Sara, you need to make a decision.’

She started crying, at some point. Her heart broke entirely, sometime in the last two minutes.

‘Len’, he still didn’t look up at her. ‘It’s not me that has to make a decision now.’

He looked up at that, eyes shining and confusion clear.

‘I’m sorry’, she started, ‘I never meant to hurt you, please believe me.’

Len nodded, just once.

‘I’ve made my decision a long time ago. Even if it scared me and I ran from it, I wanted you. Us. I wanted there to be an us, even before the Oculus.’

‘And then I died, and you changed your mind.’

Sara had to laugh at that, because it was so far off from the truth, it was practically in space.

‘No’, she said softly. ‘You died, but I still cared for you. And you weren’t there, but what I felt for you never went away. Not one bit.’

She looked up at Len, and he was still confused.

‘I cared about you before, I cared about you when you died. I cared about you in all the months that passed, and I still care about you know.’

‘Then what’s stopping us?’, he asked strongly, desperation seeping through.

‘It’s been months, Len.’, she answered in the same tone. ‘Things happened. So many things happened, to _me_. I’m not the same person I was before the Oculus. I’m not the same person you…’, her voice broke and with it, she lost all the strength she thought she had.

‘I’m not the same assassin you fell for, crook.’

At least he understood, now. She could see it in his eyes, beyond the hurt. Len said nothing, though.

So Sara got out of bed, grabbed her pillow and walked to the door.

‘I’ll sleep on the couch.’

Len said nothing.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

She woke up alone, she made coffee alone, she opened up the coffee shop on her own and there weren’t any cakes baked that morning.

Sara spent the day trying her damnest to not think about Leonard Snart and she failed miserably.

The thing was, Sara knew there was no decision for Len to make. There was no way he wanted her, not really. He’d think things through, properly, and logic will win: he will be better off without her.

Relationships on the Waverider were difficult, if not impossible. A relationship could interfere in the work they did, in the way they fought together. Sara was broken, it would be too much work from his part to deal with her.

Even if Len still cared for Sara, which she was sure he did, his brain will get the best of him.

She will not blame him for it, she couldn’t.

It didn't mean she wasn’t hurting.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Len wasn’t in the apartment when she got home that night.

She texted him, just asking to know if he got in trouble, to which he responded a simple _no_.

Sara willed herself not to cry and fell asleep on the couch.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

She woke up quickly, just a few hours later, by Len storming into the apartment. He was on the phone, grinning like crazy.

‘Our ride’s back. We have half an hour to pack.’

Sara breathed out a sigh of relief. At least they were going home.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

They sat on the bridge, listening to the team telling the story of everything that happened. It was a messy one, with a leftover Time Master who, of course, tried to kill them all, but the team handled it.

Then, they asked about Caitlin.

‘Mission completed’, Len said in a straight voice. ‘Aberration fixed. End of story.’

He didn’t storm off, but it was a close thing.

Of course, the entire team turned to Sara, then.

‘Let me guess’, Mick said around a smirk. ‘It’s complicated?’

Sara glared at him. ‘It’s not any of your business, that’s what it is.’

She didn’t storm off, she calmly left the bridge and headed for her room, intent on catching up on all the lost sleep that came with waking up at 4:30 in the morning for the past two weeks.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Gideon woke her up 6 hours later.

‘We have received a video message from Central City, 2017. Everyone else is already waiting on the bridge.’

Sara felt mildly better when she saw that they were all wearing pajamas.

And then Gideon played the message, and it was from Cisco, which never meant something good.

‘So uh, did you guys do… anything weird recently?’, he had a particularly disturbed look. ‘Cause Caitlin’s been acting off for the past week. She keeps complaining about different memories and Sara and Snart and really, she sounds pretty crazy.’

‘I am not crazy!’, Caitlin’s yell came through, before she pushed Cisco’s chair and her face appeared.

Sara couldn’t help the smile that came over her, because it’s been only a couple of days since she hung out with a teenager Caitlin and it felt good, knowing that despite what transpired between her and Len, the mission was a success.

Caitlin looked angry, though.

‘I know I’m not going crazy, and I know you did something. So get your butts down here, asap.’

The message cut off, but there was no mistaking the murdering look in Caitlin’s eyes.

‘Someone’s in trouble’, Jax taunted, earning a glare from Sara and Len, both.

‘I’ll go explain’, Sara finally rolled her eyes. ‘Let’s stay for a few days.’

The crew burst out in excited yelling, and Sara had to laugh. It’s been a while since they’ve seen their families, and honestly, her dad’s couch was calling her with a vengeance.

‘I’ll come with you’, Len said without room for argument. ‘Cisco’ll help me track down Lisa.’

‘We’ll wait for you, Sara’, Ray happily piped up, indicating him and Nate. ‘We can drive together to Star City.’

Sara nodded, and went to pack a bag.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Team Flash screamed when they entered the Cortex.

‘You’re alive!’, Cisco pointed a finger at Len.

‘Oh my god!’, Caitlin yelled, heading angrily towards them.

She didn’t hesitate, Caitlin slapped Len hard across the cheek. He didn’t react in any way. His head turned to the side with the force of the slap, and he was blinking very slowly.

‘You go, girl’, Cisco said, evidently in shock.

‘That’s for not telling us you’re alive’, Caitlin roared. Then, she hugged Len.

Pretty tightly, by the looks of it. Len still didn’t react in any way.

‘I’m so glad you’re alive’, Caitlin breathed out, while detaching herself.

She turned to Sara. ‘Please start talking, because I remember meeting you during the invasion, and I remember meeting Captain Cold when he kidnapped me, but I also remember walking into your coffee shop and sleeping on your couch and _Finding Nemo_!’

‘ _Finding Nemo_?’, Barry asked, confusion clear.

Sara took a deep breath and started explaining.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

It went pretty quickly. As soon as Sara was done talking, Len asked Cisco to point him into Lisa’s direction.

As he searched, Len leveled Caitlin with a look.

Hey’, he narrowed his eyes. ‘What happened with the guy you were crushing on in 2003?’

Caitlin snorted. ‘We were together till we left for collage.’

‘Really?’, Len sad with something interested in his tone. ‘So, for years, you dated your chemistry partner? The nerd who liked to quote movies and tv, who had long hair, too many graphic tshirts and always made you laugh?’

Caitlin frowned. ‘Yes, why?’

Len pointedly looked at Cisco. Who was wearing a graphic tshirt, was drinking out of a Twin Peaks mug and who, as the computer was searching, was trying, unsuccessfully, to tie his hair up with a pencil.

Sara had to put a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing.

‘No reason’, Len deadpanned. ‘No reason at all.’

‘She’s at Saints&Sinners’, Cisco turned around, frowning at the way Caitlin was blushing.

‘Of course she is’, Len nodded. ‘Well, see you never, hopefully.’

But before he left, Caitlin stopped him. She rummaged through her bag, and then threw something at Len.

Sara’s eyes grew wide when she realized it was Len’s Metallica shirt, the one they gave Caitlin to sleep in the first night in 2003.

Len turned to Sara. ‘I knew the drier didn’t eat it.’

Sara laughed, and Len left without another word.

‘One last question’, Caitlin leveled her with a look. ‘Snart came back to life, and you got married the next day?’

‘Married?’, Barry seemed sad. ‘And you didn’t tell us?’

‘Felicity’s gonna get real pissed’, Cisco all but sang.

‘Oliver’s gonna shoot Snart with arrows.’

Caitlin was still watching Sara.

‘We’re not married’, she told her evenly. ‘We faked it for aliases.’

‘That makes more sense’, Cisco snorted.

Caitlin seemed disappointed, and she yelled at the guys to get out of the room, which they did with only mild grumbling.

‘You were not faking’, Caitlin said with certainty. ‘Maybe about being married, sure, but not … there’s no way to fake that love.’

Despite herself, Sara smiled. It wasn’t a happy one.

‘It’s complicated.’

‘Wanna talk about it?’, Caitlin asked softly.

Sara didn’t. She really didn’t. She wanted to go to Star City, hug her ded, spar with Oliver and drink with Felicity.

Still, she hugged Caitlin before she left and laughed when she got a 5$ bill.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Sara managed to not think about Len for two whole days.

She spent time with her dad, spent her evenings drinking good wine with Felicity and in between, sparred with Oliver, Digg and their new team.

But then one night, Felicity said something about decisions, and Sara just froze, the discussion she had with Len in the bedroom coming back to her and hitting her like a wall of bricks.

Felicity asked what was wrong and Sara found herself talking. About Len, about the adventures they went through, about falling for him and losing him, about what happened in 2003.

Sara told Felicity everything and she was very proud of the fact that she didn’t start crying.

‘Wow’, was the first thing Felicity said.

‘That’s surprising’, was the second thing Felicity said.

‘Maybe he just needs time’, was the next, and Sara was quick to cut her off.

‘No, don’t… don’t give me that. I don’t want hope.’

Felicity hesitated, but nodded. She also hugged Sara and told her that it will work itself out, somehow.

It made Sara feel marginally better. That, and the two bottles of wine they had.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Her last night in town, her dad invited everyone over for dinner. All of Team Arrow was there, even the newbies.

It was a nice evening, and after they ate their weight in good food, they all sprawled around the living room with cups of coffee and various deserts.

The doorbell rang, and everyone paused.

‘Expecting anyone?’, Sara asked.

Her dad shook his head and made his way to the door.

‘Hello, Captain Lance.’, a familiar voice said. ‘Is Sara here? Can she come out and play?’

The door was slammed shut, and Quentin came into the living room glaring at Sara.

‘There is a criminal on my porch, asking for you.’

‘Which one?’, Oliver easily asked. ‘Snart or Rory?’

‘Snart’, Sara answered.

Felicity made a cute, excited noise, that had everyone frown at her.

Except for Sara, who was still looking at her dad. ‘He’s not a criminal anymore, he’s my… teammate.’

Her dad narrowed his eyes at her hesitation.

‘And something might be wrong with my team, so excuse me.’

She didn’t run out, but it was a close thing.

Len was leaning against the porch banister, casual as always. He was wearing a sweater, dark red, and that threw Sara off, a little. Just a little.

‘What’s wrong?’, she asked.

Len shook his head. ‘You’re full of shit.’

She glared, instantly. ‘Excuse me?’

‘I actually thought you were right, for a while there’, he tilted his head. ‘So I did what I do second best: I researched.’

Sara deduced that there wasn’t anything wrong with the team and that this was more of a … personal problem. So she nodded him on.

‘First, I asked Mick. Who said you’re scared and that I should knock some sense into you.’

Of course, Sara bristled at that. Len ignored her, still slouching against the banister and staring at a fixed point above Sara’s head.

‘Of course, I couldn’t trust everything Mick said, he tends to miss important details. So I went to the one with the brains. Stein.’

Len took a deep breath. ‘And he told me that you mourned me in your own unhealthy way’, he looked at her then, ‘We’re going to talk about you seducing the Queen of France, I want to hear that story’, he looked away again.

‘And then Stein started talking about true love’, he pulled a disgusted face, ‘so I bolted. Found Jax, who after he finished laughing’, Len rolled his eyes, ‘told me that we’d be great for each other and we should just stop fighting it.’

‘I still wasn’t convinced’, Len ran a hand over his face, ‘so I tracked down Palmer.’

That surprised Sara, enough that she made a sound. Len threw her a look.

‘I know, I scooped low.’

He returned to staring above Sara’s head.

‘And as much as it pains me to say this, Ray is the only one who actually had a point.’

When Len didn’t go on, Sara took a step closer to him. A tiny step, but enough to make him look at her.

‘He thinks we match. That we work well together, in and out of a mission, and that we like each other as much as we hate each other, which might just be the reason why we could make it work.’

Sara had to look away, because there were so many emotions swarming in Len’s eyes, she couldn’t handle it.

‘You’re full of shit’, Len said a loft softer than before, ‘because you know.’

‘I don’t’, she tried, but he didn’t let her, straightening and standing right in front of her, forcing Sara to look at him.

‘I went through all of this, Sara. I sought the team out and talked about _feelings_ ’, he said it like it was the most horrible thing he ever did. ‘For you. You _know_ , Sara, that no matter how much you think you’ve changed in the past months, there is nothing that will make me care less for you.’

He took a deep breath, gently wrapping his fingers around Sara’s.

‘Nothing will make me want you less.’

Sara broke down at that, her bottom lip quivering. She couldn’t look at Len anymore, but she couldn’t step away from him either. So she closed her eyes and rested her head against Len’s chest.

‘This can’t be real’, Sara finally said it out loud.

‘Why not?’, Len sighed.

‘Because it feels like we could be happy’, Sara said with incredulity. ‘How can we deserve to be happy?’

Len put his free hand on Sara’s head, gently pushing the fingers into her hair.

‘We’re Legends, Sara. We’re working on deserving happiness. And we…’, he chuckled lightly, Sara felt the vibrations of it, ‘We probably won’t be happy all the time. But if there’s a chance for some happiness for me... And you. And me and you.’

She had to smile at that.

‘I’ll take it’, Len said very softly. ‘I’ll take anything I can, if it’s with you.’

Sara wanted to say something, something as big as what he just told her, as important as Len talking to their team about his feelings, as sweet as the way he was looking at her, as strong as the way he was holding her head.

She couldn’t find anything. So she just said the truth.

‘Crook, it’s me and you now.’

Len smiled a little, tilting his head. ‘And our team.’

Sara shook her head. ‘Nobody in our team is allowed in our bedroom.’

His smile widened. ‘So we’re sleeping together now?’

‘Not right now’, she wiggled her eyebrows. ‘Right now, you’re gonna come in and have a cup of coffee with my dad and Team Arrow.’

For the first time that night, Len visibly faltered, looking towards the house with a flash of anxiousness.

Sara kissed him then, to distract him, to convince him and because she wanted it. She’s wanted it for a long, long while.

Thankfully, Len got on with the program pretty quickly and before either of them could stop it, they were making out on her dad’s porch.

They abruptly separated when they heard the front door open, but it was just Felicity, grinning like crazy.

‘Nice to meet you’, she winked at Len. ‘You should probably come inside before the guys eat all the cookies and Captain Lance has a heart attack.’

‘That’s’, Len breathed in, ‘not alarming at all.’

‘He won’t shoot you, I’m pretty sure’, Sara smiled innocently.

‘No, he won’t’, Felicity agreed. ‘Oliver will.’

‘That’s what Barry said’, Len sighed, completely dejected.

His eyes caught Sara’s, and he gave her one more quick kiss, whispering ‘Worth it’ against her lips.

Felicity giggled very loudly.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

As she walked in the living room with Len holding her hand, everybody stared in confusion, of course.

Her dad more than everyone else.

‘For God’s sake, Sara’, he quickly turned from confused to angry, ‘this is the third murderer you’ve dated!’

‘In my defense’, Sara started, hesitating only for a second, ‘I promise he’s the last.’

Quentin’s jaw dropped.

‘Getting a bit of ahead of yourself, Sara’, Len drawled out.

‘Oh my god’, Quentin all but whined, ‘Captain Cold's the rational one in this relationship.’

Sara shrugged, dragging Len to the couch and snuggling into his side. He went with it, even if it was clear he was very confused.

‘Soooooo’, Felicity interrupted the awkward silence. ‘Got any embarrassing stories about Ray?’

Len relaxed, slightly. He also smirked and started talking.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

Caitlin was waiting by the Waverider when they got back to Central City. She smirked upon seeing their clasped hands.

‘Felicity called. I wish I was there.’

‘It wasn’t that bad’, Sara felt the need to defend.

‘Nobody shot me’, Len added.

Caitlin smiled at him. ‘You know that we’re going to do a whole variety of worse things than shoot you if you ever hurt Sara, right?’

‘That’s painfully clear’, Len smirked.

Satisfied, Caitlin turned to Sara. ‘And if you hurt him, between my cold and Mick’s flames, you’re bound to die a slow and painful death.’

Sara paused for a second, before turning to look at Len. He looked genuinely touched.

‘That’s the nicest thing everyone has ever-‘

‘Stop’, Caitlin rolled her eyes.

He shut up. He also kissed Sara on the lips, then Caitlin on the cheek and made his way up to the Waverider.

‘Mine or yours?’, he asked over his shoulder.

‘My bed’s bigger’, was Sara’s quick response.

It made Len smirk, and it made Caitlin giggle. After he was gone, Caitlin kept on smiling.

‘He came to see me, you know.’

Sara was surprised. ‘He didn’t mention you, he told me about people from our team.’

Caitlin hummed. ‘I think he came to me first, and I’m sure he didn’t like what I told him.’

‘What did you tell him?’, Sara raised an eyebrow.

‘That I love you guys’, came the surprisingly quick response. ‘That I loved watching the two of you in 2003, and that I grew up hoping I’ll have something like that one day.’

‘But we were faking it’, Sara felt the need to remind her.

‘That’s what Leonard said’, Caitlin grinned, before sobering up.

‘You were so good at it, at loving each other and being together. If you were so good when you were faking, I told him to think about how you could be for real.’

Sara frowned. ‘And he didn’t like that?’

‘I think he did the same thing Cisco does. He tends to imagine things, ends of loving them too much, and gets too scared to go after them.’

Sara raised an eyebrow at that. ‘You’re talking about Cisco. You found a reason to talk about Cisco.’

Even if it had been years for her, Caitlin still remembered a conversation they had in 2003, because she smiled and nodded.

‘I’m working on it.’, Caitlin promised. ‘You keep working on being happy with Leonard.’

‘This wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for you.’, Sara said, making the other woman frown.

‘He would have come for you anyway.’

Sara shook her head. ‘I don’t mean now. I mean…then. If we wouldn’t have had to play marriage in 2003 in order to fix your time aberration, I don’t think we would have ever gotten in the position to be together.’

‘Please don’t start talking about fate’, Caitlin smiled. ‘I’m a scientist, I can’t start believing in it.’

‘I’m a time traveling, twice dead assassin, in love with a once dead brilliant crook’, Sara grinned. ‘Fate’s the least of my problems.’

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

That fact became painfully true when she got to the bridge of the Waverider and saw that almost everyone was there, and that there was a cake on the central console. It was decorated with red hearts and said _Congratulations Sara and Leonard!_

Len wasn’t there.

‘Boss ran off’, Mick told her. ‘Probably to get his gun.’

‘Gideon’, Sara said. ‘Mick will take us to the temporal zone, we’ll chill for a few hours before going on another mission.’

‘Yes, Captain Lance.’

‘Please give Len full access to my quarters’.

‘Certainly.’

‘Has he started packing his room yet?

‘Yes, Captain.’

Sara leveled her team with a strong look.

‘He’s not getting his gun to freeze you all, but that will happen if any of you ever come to our room uninvited.’

‘Moving in so quickly?’, Jax was teasing.

She looked between him and Ray for a minute, trying to figure out who’s idea the cake was. Ultimately, she shoved Ray’s face into it.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

An hour later, Sara and Len were in pajamas, wrapped up around one another in bed. They were both half asleep, neither of them made any move towards something other than sleeping.

‘So’, Len whispered. ‘Fate’s the least of your problems.’

‘Heard that, did you?’, Sara rolled her eyes.

Len hummed, straightening his hold on her.

‘Don’t act weird just cause I said I was in love with you.’

‘I’m not acting weird.’, he moved his hands to her ass.

Suddenly, Sara was wide awake.

‘Not even a little bit?’, she teased.

Len kissed her then, strongly and filthy and hot and he pulled back just enough to somewhat angrily say ‘I love you’. He didn’t give Sara a chance to respond, kissing her with desperate excitement and she had no trouble in returning the favor.

¤Δ¤»L«¤Δ¤

It took a couple of years, but Sara did, eventually, get the strength to ask Gideon the question that constantly came up in her head, especially in moments of weakness.

‘Len and I getting together. Was it a fixed point in time?’

If an AI could smile, Sara was sure Gideon was doing it.

‘Of course. It has been fixed since the moment Mr. Snart died.’

Sara sighed. ‘Fate, my ass.’

‘A fixed moment is fate, Captain Snart. You should have learned that by now.’

**Author's Note:**

> -no, the Captain Snart at the end there is not a mistake. heh.  
> -sorry about the surprise!KillerVibe. sorry, not sorry.


End file.
